The Great Synagogue Memorial Park in Oświęcim
The Great Synagogue was the central Jewish house of worship in Oświęcim before the Holocaust. Built in the mid 19th century in the neo-Moorish style, it was completely destroyed by the Germans in November 1939. Currently, the site holds a simple, worn-out plaque with basic historical information.
It is regularly visited by youth primarily from Germany, the UK and Poland as part of educational guided tours and other remembrance projects dedicated to the victims of the Holocaust.
This year we will be remembering the 80th anniversary of the tragic destruction of the Great Synagogue (Nov 29/30, 1939). The Auschwitz Jewish Center will leverage that opportunity to create an appropriate permanent commemoration of that building in its original location. The Auschwitz Jewish Center in Oświęcim has decided to create the Memorial Park and an art installation to educate about the history of the destroyed synagogue. It will become a highly accessible space which will combine commemoration and reflection with site of historical education. It will be a strong reminder and an educational tool about the outcomes of antisemitism and other forms of xenophobia which are on the rise in Europe today.
The project is currently in the phase of intensive planning and production. The Memorial Park is scheduled for the opening in November 2019.
A Memorial Park is planned at the site of the Great Synagogue in Oświęcim, the town mostly known under its German name: Auschwitz. The unveiling of the park will coincide with 80th anniversary of the destruction of the Great Synagogue by the Germans at the beginning of World War Two.
Maciej Zabierowski, Auschwitz Jewish Center